In the course of storage and distribution of automobiles, etc., to protect their exterior paint films (coatings) from damage, dirt collection, etc., a technique of applying coating protection sheets to paint films is known. A coating protection sheet used for such a purpose is generally constructed to comprise a non-porous plastic film (substrate) and a PSA layer provided to one face thereof and to be adhered via the PSA layer to a coated surface of an automobile to achieve the protection purpose.
Similarly to the paint films, window plates (typically glass windows) of automobiles are exposed to the outside of the automobiles and may suffer damage, etc., in the course of storage and distribution. For instance, while an automobile is being transported, its window plates may get partially scratched or cracked when hit by a pebble kicked up off the road (flying pebble), etc. Scratches and cracks in an automobile window plate are likely to result in significant additional work and costs as they may require a complete replacement of the window plate. Thus, lately, in the course of storage and distribution of automobiles, etc., there is increasing demand for protective materials to protect window plates of the automobiles. Technical literatures related to PSA sheets that are applied to the outer surfaces of automobile window plates for their protection include Patent Documents 1 to 3.